


Summer Rain

by 0Rocky41_7



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-22
Updated: 2017-12-22
Packaged: 2019-02-18 06:32:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13094430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/0Rocky41_7/pseuds/0Rocky41_7
Summary: Meimei isn't the type to sit by, inactive, when she begins seeing the beautiful woman at her local cafe. But getting close to Natalia proves more complicated than planned, and Natalia is dealing with demons of her own.





	Summer Rain

**Author's Note:**

> I never posted this here??? Baffling
> 
> It was a double entry for aphyuriweek (coffee shop au) and also aphrarepairweek (water) in like...2016?

                The first time Meimei saw her, she was intrigued if only because the woman was so different from everyone else around her. Meimei lived at the edges of Taiwan’s capital city of Taipei, and in the small coffee shop, the strange woman stood a good several inches above most people (that first day, aided by the significant heel on her shoes), with long, platinum blonde hair so light it was almost white. She did not at all fit in amongst the shorter, darker-haired Taiwanese who usually occupied the shop, and so Meimei’s attention as caught.

                The second reason was because she was beautiful.

                It took Meimei some time to decide on this, however, owing to several factors. The woman had pale, porcelain skin that made her look a doll, painstakingly put together by some hobbyist, and then laid on a shelf to gather dust. Her eyes were steely gray, and seemed constantly displeased with her surroundings. The line of her jaw passed firm, and steamrollered on into harsh, angular, like her nose, which jutted out sharply from her face and came to a point. Her forehead was broad, but not Neanderthalish, and her lips were thin, though formed exquisitely, and more often than not, frowning. In the end, Meimei concluded that the woman was beautiful, in a cold, statuesque way.

                For her own habits, Meimei came often to the café to draw. She was majoring in fashion design, and she liked being able to people-watch while she worked on her designs for class. Since she was approaching the end of her degree, she also spent a good amount of time in the classroom or her apartment sewing, so it was doubly nice to get out some, out of the stuffy air.

                When the woman looked up, Meimei reflexively doubled over her sketchpad, even though those piercing gray eyes were nowhere near her. The last thing she wanted was to get caught gawking. The woman stayed half an hour, read the paper that had been sitting on the table she chose, and then left. Meimei wondered where she was going.

                On Thursday, she was back.

                Meimei began to make a habit of watching her, as the strange woman—Natalia, by the name called out for her coffees—began to make a habit of coming to the café. Sometimes Meimei studied her fashion—which was unique in an almost chic, neo-gothic kind of way—and other times she had to admit she was just watching. She struggled to name what drew her attention so much to Natalia, but she knew herself well enough by now to know that her interest in girls was more than platonic. She told herself to let it go, forget about the foreigner, but Natalia didn’t stop coming to the café, and Meimei refused to drive herself away from a place she enjoyed.

                It took her over a month to decide she had to do something. She could at least reach out to the woman, right? The worst that would happen is she…well, Meimei didn’t really want to think about the worst. When she felt she had a good grasp on Natalia’s schedule, she handed her card to the barista

                “What will you get for her?” the barista intoned as he took the card. Meimei puzzled over the menu for several moments; she had never paid much attention to Natalia’s actual order. In the end, she settled for just purchasing the most expensive coffee they had, just in case.

                That day, Natalia didn’t come.

                Meimei waited around the café for three hours before she finally conceded defeat, and got back in line to have the barista remove the charge from her card.

                “Maybe it’s a sign from fate,” she told herself miserably as she opened up her parasol to walk home. Spring was breaking firmly through the mild winter, and the weather day to day was as changeable as a teenager’s mood. Today a cool, bright sun shone insistently down on the neighborhood, and Meimei always loved an excuse to take out one of her cute, fashionable parasols. Today’s was pink, with a selection of flowers and a pattern of a little rabbits around the edge.

                Before she accepted defeat, she resolved herself to give it one more go. The next time she was in the café, she again charged her card for Natalia’s coffee, then took her seat to wait. This time, she was not disappointed, and she felt a bit ridiculous at how fast her heartbeat sped up when Natalia walked in. Success! Over the edge of her sketchpad, she surreptitiously watched the tall woman walk up to the counter and give her order. She was too far away through the daily clatter of the café for Meimei to ever make out what she was saying, but she could tell Mandarin was not Natalia’s first language even by the garbled sound of it. The barista said something and Natalia began to turn, causing Meimei to book a hasty retreat behind her drawings and pretend to be scribbling furiously at something (she was, in point of fact, re-shading something she had drawn earlier and already shaded). She stayed there, heart pounding, waiting for Natalia to come over. But when at last she girded herself to lift her head, the blonde was sitting at her usual table, turning newspaper pages with all the interest of one watching the grass grow. Meimei’s heart sank. Was this rejection? Was this Natalia’s way of saying she wasn’t interested? Buying coffee with an unorthodox way to try to befriend someone; maybe Natalia had already guessed Meimei had other motives.

                She made herself stay a few more minutes, to not look so much like a wolf slinking off with her tail between her legs, and then took her leave. The sky matched her despair cloud for cloud, and by the time she was fishing her apartment key out, a drizzle had begun to patter down on the street. Inside, she collapsed face-first on her bed and pried her shoes off with her feet.

                “Ughhh…why are women so difficult?” she groaned, pulling her pillow over her head.

                But Meimei was a tenacious sort, and she decided that the first coffee didn’t really count as anything, since Natalia had never even received it. If she was really going to try twice, she needed to make sure Natalia got both of the coffees. So the next time she was in for coffee, she purchased another for Natalia, trying not to look too much at the price on her receipt. She needed to find a cheaper way of wooing; her job assisting in a local boutique did not make enough to be buying this much expensive coffee.

                She kept her eyes firmly on her sketchbook but they strained so hard at the corners of her gaze that she couldn’t miss Natalia’s curtain of silvery hair swish through the café door. Meimei’s grip on her sketchbook tightened; it took all her concentration not to look up at Natalia as she made her way through the short line up to the counter. She was so absorbed in pretending not to pay attention that she completely missed Natalia’s order, and the next time she looked up, the iron-eyed woman was right beside her seat. She flailed, nearly dropping her sketchpad as he heart leaped into her throat.

                “What do you want?” Natalia asked her. Meimei could hear the accent more clearly now, that thickened Natalia’s tongue and ended her words in clipped, “yeh” type sounds.

                “W-want?” Meimei stammered stupidly, all her plans for this meeting fleeing out of her head now that Natalia had thrown her off-kilter.

                “The coffee. You have bought it for me twice now,” she said. “What do you want?”

                “Uh…” Meimei was still frozen in her seat like she’d been caught red-handed, half leaning away from the encroaching blonde, digging through every nook and cranny in her brain for something witty to say. “I uh…um, I w-wondered if…maybe you’d like to…get dinner sometime?” That sounded good, right? Innocuous enough, but not wholly without romantic undertones? Not too pushy, but not too wishy-washy?

                Something flickered through Natalia’s expression, but Meimei couldn’t read it.

                “I don’t go out,” she said flatly. Meimei wondered if that was true, or if it was just Natalia’s way of telling her no.

                “Oh. Well…would you like to sit?” she offered feebly, gesturing to the armchair across from hers. “I just…noticed you come here a lot. This is my favorite café as well.” She was recovering! She could save this still! Natalia looked her up and down yet again, as though scanning her for more information, and then, to Meimei’s delight, took the proffered seat. She did not, however, speak, so Meimei continued. “You have an accent,” she remarked. “Where are you from?”

                “Belarus,” was the reply. She spoke so curtly Meimei wondered if she had offended her by asking. Half her mind was occupied with that, while the other half tried to remember where Belarus was. It was in eastern Europe, she remembered that, but its exact location escaped her. It was a poor country, she remembered that. She wondered why Natalia had left.

                “I’m Meimei,” she blurted out, realizing she had never introduced herself. Natalia nodded and lowered her head to sip her coffee. “Um…what brings you to Taipei?” Natalia did not seem interested in carrying on a conversation, so it was up to Meimei to keep trying.

                “Ballet.”

                “You dance?” Meimei perked up at once; that was something to talk about! And ballet too; how elegant! Her heart did a little shimmy dance in her chest, thinking of Natalia the ballerina. “That’s so cool! Professionally, or just for fun?” There was a long silence before Natalia replied, giving Meimei the impression she had somehow asked something rude.

                “Professionally.”

                “Wow.”  Meimei’s eyes widened with awe. “That’s amazing. I’ve never seen a real ballet up close.” Natalia looked down into her coffee.

                “It’s…another world,” she said quietly, and Meimei held back from speaking for a few moments—Natalia looked as if she had stepped off into that other world, no longer aware of the one in front of her.

                “There’s…there’s an arts festival going on in the park next week,” Meimei mentioned softly at last. “I was looking for someone to go with, but all my friends are busy.” That was only a little bit of a lie; she assumed they were busy, she hadn’t asked. “Would you like to come?” A festival was less intimate than dinner, less indicative of something romantic. Maybe Natalia would be amenable to that. The Belorussian looked her over, calculating her reply in her head, before answering.

                “Wednesday is my only free day.”

                “Perfect!” Meimei beamed. She was getting somewhere! “The fair runs Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday!” When she got no response, she wondered if she was pushing too hard. Maybe Natalia really wasn’t interested at all. Or maybe she was just shy, and came off sort of…unpleasant. “Oh!” She tore off a piece of paper from her assignment guidelines. “Here’s my number,” she said, writing it down and handing it over. “Text me if you’re free.” Once she had done that, she could feel her face starting to get hot, so she jumped to her feet, collecting her things to shove into her bag. “Well I have to go, it was nice talking to you,” she babbled. “I hope we can hang out sometime, you seem like a really interesting person! Have a nice day!” She practically ran out the door.

                Natalia did not text her about the fair. Meimei would be lying if she said she wasn’t disappointed, even a little crushed. She felt like she had recovered pretty well from the disastrous few sentences that passed between them, and she had really hoped she’d managed to break through Natalia’s icy exterior. She went to the fair anyway, because she had planned to, but the whole thing seemed a drab, dull affair in light of Natalia’s silence.

                “I suppose it’s time to give up,” she told herself as she bought a bubble tea from one of the food stands. She had made a valiant effort, but some women simply could not be won over. At least, she thought so until she was browsing through some hand-woven baskets at one of the stands and saw a familiar platinum head poking over one of the display poles. Panic seized her; should she say something? Of course she should! “Natalia!” She went around to the other side of the basket display to smile at the other woman. Natalia looked briefly, slightly, like she was the one who had been caught guilty.

                “Meimei. I thought you were coming on Wednesday,” she said, her fingertips resting on a purple-themed basket.

                “I thought you had work today,” Meimei quipped back, though she wasn’t really very upset. Natalia just seemed like a cagey sort of person; Meimei didn’t take it personally.

                “They didn’t need me today,” Natalia replied. Her eyes flicked down to the grass and she removed her hand from the basket. “I should be going.” She looked uncomfortable, and Meimei decided to make one last effort to extend the hand of friendship (and maybe girlfriend-ship) to her.

                “Before you go!” She reached out and laid her hand ever so lightly on Natalia’s arm. “You have to have a bubble tea. This one stand here has the best jellies.” She was on the verge of offering to buy one for Natalia, before she decided that was too much. If she wanted to come off more casually, she had to let Natalia buy her own drinks. Still, her hand tingled where she had touched the blonde.

                “I suppose I could get a drink,” Natalia allowed. The twist of her lips suggested mostly-concealed confusion, but she followed Meimei out of the white tent, back towards the food stands.

                “Do you come to the arts fairs often?” Meimei chirped as they waited in line. Natalia still seemed befuddled, possibly over why Meimei wasn’t mad that Natalia had ignored her and then come to the fair anyway, but it kept her a bit more vulnerable than usual, which was good for conversation.

                “No…not often,” she said.

                “Well this is a good one to pick,” she said. “It’s not the biggest, but it has the most local artists. Oh, the orange-flavored jellies are really good here.” Slightly overwhelmed by the vast number of options, Natalia just got a black tea with the orange jellies Meimei had suggested.

                “Did you see the blown glass over that way?” Meimei asked as they stepped away, Natalia sipping her tea. “They had one that looked like a cat!” Natalia looked over in the direction Meimei had indicated and shook her head.

                “No, I haven’t seen them…”

                “Do you want to go look?” Meimei offered, sensing an opportunity. She had to learn to read Natalia’s signs. So far, a lack of a distinct, firm “no” meant there was a chance. Natalia didn’t say yes, so much as she left off the no. This time, she gave a slow nod, so Meimei smiled and led her off in that direction.

                And thus, she managed to keep Natalia at the fair for another hour and a half, walking along the rows of artists, later getting themselves something to eat and sitting on a curb to eat. Meimei was fairly glowing with success by the end, barely able to stop herself from breaking into a grin brought on by nothing but Natalia’s continued presence by her side.

                “This was fun,” she said when they were preparing to part ways. “Maybe we can hang out again sometime.”

                “Yes. I’ll…I’ll text you,” Natalia said, tugging briefly at the edge of her peach shirt.

                “Great! Thanks for looking around with me.” Meimei smiled brightly and waved to Natalia as she headed towards the bus stop. “Bye! See you next time!”

                The fair wasn’t so much breaking the dam as it was getting a foot wedged in the door. Meimei still found it an uphill battle to try to get Natalia to open up and spend time with her. If it weren’t for one thing, she would have given up entirely: she sensed Natalia was conflicted. There were times she seemed on the verge of being honest, times she seemed to relax, just for a moment, but then she would seal up again like a clam. Meimei could catch sight of those moments and strove to weasel her fingers between the lips of the clam to keep it open, and find the pearl within.

                At least, until Natalia finally put an end to their little flirtation. Meimei had come over to the townhouse where Natalia was living to collect her and go to a movie, but she could tell Natalia was agitated as soon as she was let in.

                “I can’t go to the movies,” Natalia said promptly, clasping her hands behind her back and turning sharply on her heel to look at Meimei.

                “Did something come up?” Meimei asked, worried by Natalia’s behavior.

                “No. I just can’t go. Ever. We can’t see each other anymore.” Meimei’s feet felt cold.

                “But…why?” It had been her impression that they had been getting along quite well lately. It seemed like she was breaking through Natalia’s shell more and more. But maybe that was the problem. “Did I do something wrong?”

                “No. I just don’t want to see you anymore.” Natalia’s already rigid back stiffened further, and her expression had all the softness of a stone dragon. “Please go.”

                “Natalia…” Meimei tried to push the hurt from that statement aside. Natalia was lashing out, she told herself. They could get past it. “This isn’t like you. Just tell me what’s going on.”

                “It is like me,” Natalia said coldly. “Don’t pretend to fool yourself otherwise. You’ve known since the beginning I have no interest in being likeable. And now I’m done with you, so please go.”

                “This isn’t fair!” Meimei argued, finding her temper finally galled by the Belorussian. “I deserve an explanation!”

                “And I’ve given you one,” Natalia replied. “I don’t want to be around you anymore. I don’t see how much clearer I can be.”

                “You’re hiding something!” Meimei accused. “You’re just pushing me away because you don’t want to talk about whatever it is!”

                “I’m pushing you away because you’re a waste of my time,” Natalia replied harshly, her face twisting up into a nasty expression. “You think I haven’t known this whole time that you’re only talking to me because you’ve got a schoolgirl crush? I can’t believe how stupid you would have to be to continue pursuing someone who is so clearly not interested.” She turned abruptly away from Meimei and leaned her hands on a low cabinet, not looking over at her guest. “Since you are incapable of cutting yourself off, I’m doing it for you. I’ve been polite long enough. Get out of my house. Go! Leave!” For the first time she raised her voice, turning a wild expression on Meimei. “Get out of my life!”

                Meimei was shaking. She would never have thought of herself as a coward, but she couldn’t think of a single thing to say in the face of Natalia’s cruelty. Wordlessly, she turned and rushed outside, forgetting the umbrella she had brought with her. She had nearly made it a block when the clouds that had been hovering over Taipei all day broke, unleashing a warm rain onto the city. She stopped to grasp a light pole, gasping for breath even though she hadn’t run far at all. Her eyes stung, and when she thought of how she had refused to consider the worst outcome of contacting Natalia, she imagined this must be it. Why hadn’t she thought more about it before choosing to pursue the distant woman?

                Leaning against the pole for support, Meimei swallowed her tears. Why was it so difficult? Was Natalia disgusted by her? Had she been all along? Had that been the hesitation Meimei had seen in her? Somehow, that hurt even more than personal rejection. The thought that she was loathsome to Natalia because of her feelings.

                She let go of the lamppost and began to hurry down the darkening sidewalk, trying to regulate her breathing to stop herself from weeping. A tear slipped free regardless, but it was indistinguishable from the summer rain coming down on her face.

                “Meimei!” She was scurrying across the street when she heard her name, and looked back to see Natalia in hot pursuit. Her hair was pulled back from her face in a ponytail, something she never wore out of the house, and the loose strands of long hair were sticking to her face from the rain. “Meimei!” she wailed. “Wait!”

                Only a nature as generous and forgiving as Meimei’s could have kept her there to hear whatever Natalia had to say after the outburst in the townhouse.

                “Wait,” Natalia said as she caught up with Meimei, slightly out of breath from her sprint. “I lied.”

                Natalia had a way of saying quick things that immediately piqued Meimei’s interest and forced her to listen to the rest of the conversation.

                “About—”

                “About everything,” Natalia interrupted. “I didn’t move here with my brother. I moved here to get away from him. I’m not here for the ballet, I quit when I left Belarus. I haven’t danced since I moved away. I came here because…” She was still catching her breath and her face looked as torn as Meimei had ever seen it. She wasn’t meeting Meimei’s eyes, and her teeth kept worrying her lower lip. “I was in love with someone who didn’t love me back. At least, not the way I wanted him to. And I…I knew it was unhealthy, but it took me a long time to decide I had to go…I didn’t like the person I became when I was around him.” She was breathing with forced steadiness now, like trying to stave off a meltdown. “I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life being that person, living the way I was. So I came here to escape my life in Minsk. But that was almost five years ago. And I…sometimes I think I’m still not over it,” she confessed, self-loathing underscoring her tone. She clenched her hands into fists, and Meimei could see the rigidity in her shoulders. “I’m not a person who’s made for relationships, Meimei. Not any kind of relationship. I tried to push you away from the start.”

                “But you spent time with me!” Meimei broke in with a protest.

                “Because I couldn’t commit,” Natalia said bitterly. “I was weak. And you were…so…” She had to gather herself to continue. “Kind. I couldn’t understand why you gave me so many chances when I was so rude to you.”

                “No! Natalia…” Meimei stepped closer. “That’s such a brave thing to do,” she said as quietly as she could with the rain spitting down around them. “Leaving your home, everything you know, coming to a place where you don’t speak the language, with no plan…”

                “Most people would call that stupid,” Natalia interjected dryly.

                “I think it’s brave,” Meimei insisted. “Not a lot of people have the courage to leave an unhealthy situation, especially with someone they love.”

                “What good is bravery when you’re not a good person?” Natalia asked, glancing away. “You deserve better, Meimei. You deserve someone as sweet as you are.”

                “The world would be boring if we were all the same,” Meimei said with a slight smile. “I knew from the beginning you weren’t as nasty as you seemed.”

                “You hoped,” Natalia corrected.

                “Okay, from nearly the beginning,” Meimei amended.

                “But Meimei, I’m serious,” Natalia said, trying to bring the conversation back around. “I’m just not a people person. I’ve accepted that. It is what it is.” Meimei shook her head.

                “I think you’re wrong,” she said. “I think you should give yourself another chance. Do you think I make you a bad person?” Natalia shook her head at once.

                “On the contrary. I feel like a better person when I’m with you,” she said.

                “So what’s the problem?” Meimei asked. Natalia hesitated, and Meimei reached out to take her hand. “It’s okay to be afraid, Natalia,” she said softly. “Even brave people are afraid sometimes.”

                “How do I know this is the right thing to do?” Natalia asked in a low voice, raising her warring gaze to Meimei’s warm brown eyes. _How do I know it’s safe?_

                “You don’t know. You just have to get a feeling,” Meimei replied. “Like this.” She leaned up on her toes to press a kiss to Natalia’s lips. They were wet and warm from the rain. Natalia took only a moment to respond, leaning into Meimei’s kiss.

                “I’ve never had a girlfriend before,” she admitted quietly when Meimei pulled back. The Taiwanese girl smiled and took Natalia’s other hand as well.

                “Not a problem,” she said. “I’ll show you all the steps. We can start with this one.” She kissed Natalia again, smiling into it.

                “Like that?” Natalia asked, a slight teasing note in her voice.

                “Just like this,” Meimei giggled, kissing her cheek. “Secondly, we should probably get out of the rain.”

**Author's Note:**

> [On tumblr](http://imakemywings.tumblr.com/post/146621073175/summer-rain)


End file.
